We decided to ask some of our Salon Today Facebook fans where they were focusing their client marketing efforts. We got many responses, indicating that this is an area that is getting a lot of attention. In a tough economy, service businesses cannot rest on their laurels. Everyone needs to reach an increased range of clients.

Here are some of the new markets salon owners tell us they are pursuing.

CINDY LEVIGENO LEVI SALON/INNOVATIVE SALON CONCEPTSMCMURRAY, PENNSYLVANIAOur audience has transformed and shifted since we relocated our salon less than a year ago. We are seeing a younger female guest come to the salon—one who is eager for more creative and fashion-forward options. This category of guest is a perfect fit with our Geno Levi Academy Training and Trend Teams. Our stylists are elevated after achieving educational milestones, and our younger ”tween” clients, who we call “early adapters” grow with our stylists. The younger clients stay with us and have a higher lifetime value as they develop more trust in our Geno Levi brand. We educate all clients on the value that we bring to them as both professional service and at-home maintenance experts.

ANNA CRAIGTRASHY ROOTS SALON & SPAROUND ROCK, TEXASTrashy Roots is located in Round Rock, Texas, a suburb of Austin. Our market is diverse and we welcome everyone with services and products for our eclectic clientele that includes suburban moms, college students, working professionals, retirees and children. Hair color represents 80 percent of our service income, so most of our clients are women. We have been targeting new clients by offering a free haircut to any client who refers three people to our salon. Our salon team is a diverse group and we speak Portuguese. Korean and Spanish. We offer a wide range of products for specific hair types and strive to have something for everyone.

JAI CARON LENOIRNOIRCHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINAWe have grown in unexpected ways while experiencing changes in our market. We no longer limit our business only to salon services, but take advantage of opportunities outside the traditional salon environment.At Noir, we have a freelance team that operates as a creative co-op, focusing on special group events and establishing ourselves as bridal beauty experts. Each individual member of our freelance team has experience as a successful business owner, but all decided to pursue the opportunities that exist beyond the confines of the salon. We have pooled our resources to reenergize our special event services with our varied skill sets and are developing a nationwide bridal and event service.We have partnered with local charities to build our business giving us the chance to increase business and extend our core value of supporting charities within our community.

STEPHANIE BISHOPEAGLE HAIR STUDIOCHESTER SPRINGS, PENNSYLVANIAAs a relatively new salon, we spent a lot of time determining who our target market would be. After much research, we found that women between the ages of 35-61 were the most consistent clients. They requested multiple services every 5-6 weeks and tended to bring in family members. Many told us they would like to schedule more often, but just couldn’t afford it. That lead us to establish our motto, “Where elegance meets affordability.” This market is a little more mature, but very loyal. By keeping our prices reasonable, we have established a clientele that will re-book every 4-6 weeks, no matter what. This demographic has the best re-booking rate and brings in referrals.

DAVID BARRONBARRON’S LONDON SALONATLANTA, GEORGIAAt Barron’s Salon, we have a very diverse clientele and if we had to pick a specific group to whom we market, it would be the woman who has had a difficult time finding someone who can give her the hair color she wants. Sometimes this client is looking for a creative consultation and suggestions and other times she knows exactly what she wants, but has not been able to find a stylist who can get it right.We take pride in our stylists’ abilities to perform advanced color techniques and we market our corrective color services, base colors, highlights and lowlights to women of all ages.Once a client is in the chair, the other services become part of the consultation. We love to find the client who is difficult to please and exceed her expectations. These clients understand the value of the service they receive at Barron’s and will refer us over and over to other women in the same position.

LATOYA TURNEREYE DEUXNEWPORT NEWS, VIRGINIAWe have had one target market from the beginning and that is women who want to wake up beautiful and not have to think about their make-up for the rest of the day. We are especially interested in the military women who are stationed at the bases near our location. We offer semi-permanent mascara, eyelash extensions and permanent make-up--all long-term beauty solutions. Our market for these services transcends any categorization of age, race, ethnicity, profession, or military or marital status. All women who desire these services want beauty without the bother.

PAUL KENYONPAUL EDWARD SALON SPALONDONDERRY, NEW HAMPSHIREAt a recent salon meeting, we decided to target the businesses within a certain radius of Paul Edward Salon. We began with a local hospital and discovered that several administrators there were already clients in our salon. We approached them and came up with a program that allowed hospital employees and family members to receive a professional discount on services and promotions as a benefit of working there. The salon is located in a mall and we printed professional discount cards that we take to various businesses to welcome them to the community and let them know that we support them and welcome their business. It is a great way to become involved in the community. We also approach small, privately owned companies. It is a very personal way to bring the business owners and their families into the salon.

MARC LEVITANESSENTIALS SALON AT VALLEY SQUAREIn today’s economy, we are in no position to focus on a specific audience, age group or gender. It is vital for my salon team to be highly educated, not only from a technical standpoint, but from a global trends perspective as well. Our team must be able to meet the needs of a ten-year-old girl who wants a feather extension as well as the 70-year-old woman who wants a perm—and everyone in between.We believe that the more diverse we are as stylists and colorists, the more diverse our client base will become, ultimately driving traffic into our salon.

TERI PETERSONHAIR, STRANDZ AND HANDZBILLINGS, MONTANAOur salon stands out in this region because although Billings is a town of 150,000 people, we are one of the only salons to provide luxury services. The closest city offering similar services is 550 miles away, so we are not only the most convenient, but also the most imaginative and advanced in the area. We have a Web site, a Facebook page and an online booking system. In addition to providing an array of services, we also offer packages, specials and gifts with purchase. We are priced for the everyday person who appreciates luxury. Our goal is to always exceed the expectations of our guests with hair, nail, skin care, waxing and make-up services. We showcase new trends, techniques and products and provide an escape from the every day where everyone feels welcome.